A monthly maintenance and grill clean schedule will help prolong the life of the grill depending how often you use it. Gas, charcoal, and electric grills should be cleaned once or twice per month. That cadence ramps up in the summer, when we grill more: “The good rule of thumb is for every five to seven cooks, clean your grill,” explains Kalman. Pellet grills, however, should be cleaned after every use.

The Importance Of Keeping Your Grill Clean

Old buildup on your grill is not the “ingredient” you want to help flavor your food. That should be left up to the seasonings, sauce, or wood you decide to use.

When you cook, two things can build up on your grill: grease and carbon. Left for too long and not cleaned off, the grease can get rancid, vaporize with heat. And leave a foul taste to your food. The grease can also become a food safety issue if left uncleaned for too long. The carbon forms a black crust on your grates and other components and can quickly leave a burnt taste on your food. It also makes it a lot easier for your meat to stick to the grates. A buildup of grease and carbon also wreaks havoc on your grill itself. It will cause grill components to break down or rust very quickly. Unnecessarily shortening your cooker’s life span. Keeping your grill or smoker clean and free of excessive buildup will not only help you cook great-tasting food but also help extend the life of your cooker.

Keep Your Grill Moving Forward

Once you have done a deep clean of your grill, being proactive about keeping your grill clean will make things much easier and your cooking more successful. One of the easiest ways to do this is to do a quick clean of your grill grates after each cook while the grates are still hot. This will keep grease and carbon from building up on those grates.

If you are using charcoal and/or wood as your fuel source, just let the coals burn out and carbonize the food residue. Then, use one of the methods we covered above to clean your grill grates. If you are using a pellet cooker or gas grill. Leave the heat going for a little bit after you are done cooking and clean those grates off. Just make sure you don’t forget to turn the cooker all the way off when you are done.

Then your grill grates will be clean and ready to go for the next time you cook.